Korea, Singapore to develop renewable energy-powered building system technology

On Tuesday, the ICT ministries of Korea and Singapore signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for joint digital projects at COEX in Gangnam District, southern Seoul.

Josephine Teo, left, Singapore's Minister of Communication and Information, and Lee Jong-ho, Korea’s Minister of Science and ICT, sign a memorandum of understanding for joint digital projects at COEX in southern Seoul, Tuesday. [MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND ICT]

Korea and Singapore will jointly develop a renewable energy-powered building system technology, and collaborate on setting a regulatory framework for digital healthcare services.

On Tuesday, the ICT ministries of Korea and Singapore signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for joint digital projects at COEX in Gangnam District, southern Seoul.

The signing ceremony for the “Korea-Singapore AI [Artificial Intelligence] Collaboration” was attended by Josephine Teo, Singapore’s Minister of Communication and Information, and Lee Jong-ho, Korea’s Minister of Science and ICT.

“The Korea-Singapore AI MOU will be a new milestone in our digital partnership and will allow us to exchange AI technologies and experiences in promoting the responsible use of AI,” said Teo during the event.

“The AI collaboration between Korea and Singapore focuses on AI’s role in solving the problems that humanity is currently facing, and reflects our will to overcome them together with the international community,” said Lee, adding that “the AI collaboration is in line with the Yoon Suk-yeol government’s digital vision and Singapore’s vision to become a ‘Smart Nation.’”

The collaborating areas include sustainable building, digital healthcare and a regulative framework for artificial intelligence-related technologies.

The governments will together invest 1.6 billion won ($1.2 million) in a two-year project focusing on “AI-based engineering for eco-friendly net-zero energy building system” to develop a sustainable building technology.

Korea’s Institute of Information and Communications Technology Planning and Evaluation and Singapore’s AI Singapore, or AISG, will lead the project.

Moreover, they plan to collaborate on a policy framework for digital healthcare devices and services, and set up a communication channel between Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, which grants approval for healthcare services, and Singapore’s Health and Sciences Authority.

They will also discuss a regulative framework to ensure responsible development and use of artificial intelligence-related technologies.

In a closed meeting ahead of the MOU signing ceremony, Lee discussed Korea’s digital policies related to metaverse, 6G network, and quantum information communication with the Singaporean minister, and asked for the country’s support for Busan’s bid to host the 2030 World Expo.

The Singaporean government’s delegation, led by Teo, came to Korea on a three-day trip from Monday to Wednesday, and have visited Korea’s leading IT and communication companies including Samsung Electronics, Naver, Kakao and SK Telecom so far.

Korea and Singapore signed a digital partnership agreement on Nov. 21, to establish trade rules to promote interoperability between the two countries’ digital economy.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]